UNMAI (Unit of Monitoring of Aid Implementation) is an INTOSAI initiative in the framework of the aid audit trail following the December 26, 2004 tsunami which hit Southeast Asia. Its objective is to formulate guidelines and best practices for SAIs and relevant stakeholders in order to have a potential audit trail before disasters occur. UNMAI is a new organisation, based on civil society support and is focused on the performance audit. UNMAI monitors the implementation of aid “in the field”.
INTOSAI in this initiative plays an intermediate role between relevant audit institutions - SAIs and UNMAI – in order to “check and balance”. It's accountability framework is as follows:
The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC/UNESCO) was established by resolution 2.31 adopted by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It first met in Paris at UNESCO Headquarters from 19 to 27 October 1961. Initially, 40 States became members of the commission. The IOC assists governments to address their individual and collective ocean and coastal management needs, through the sharing of knowledge, information and technology as well as through the co-ordination of programs and building capacity in ocean and coastal research, observations and services.
An audit committee is a committee of an organisation's board of directors which is responsible for oversight of the financial reporting process, selection of the independent auditor, and receipt of audit results both internal and external.
Government performance auditing focuses on improving how governments provide programs and services. While there is no one universally agreed upon definition, there are key definitions which capture the scope of government performance auditing. According to the US Government Auditing Standards, "Performance audits are defined as audits that provide findings or conclusions based on an evaluation of sufficient, appropriate evidence against criteria." Additionally, the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions defines performance auditing as "an independent examination of the efficiency and effectiveness of government undertakings, programs or organizations, with due regard to economy, and the aim of leading to improvements.
The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) is an organization that develops guidelines for businesses to evaluate internal controls, risk management, and fraud deterrence. In 1992, COSO published the Internal Control – Integrated Framework, commonly used by businesses in the United States to design, implement, and conduct systems of internal control over financial reporting and assessing their effectiveness.
The Supreme Audit Office is the supreme audit institution and also one of the oldest state institutions in Poland, created under the Second Republic on February 7, 1919, barely 3 months after the restoration of Poland's independence. It was created on the initiative of the Head of State, Józef Piłsudski. Its organisation and functioning are set out in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and the NIK Act of 23 December 1994. The NIK is subordinate to the Sejm and it acts in accordance with the principle of collegial responsibility. The NIK is headed by the President who is appointed by the Sejm for a six-year term of office. The NIK performs audits related to, primarily, the execution of the state budget as well as public finance spending and management of public property by state and local governmental bodies and economic entities. Every year, the NIK submits three key documents to the Sejm: the analysis of the state budget execution and monetary policy guidelines, the opinion on the vote of discharge for the Council of Ministers and the annual report on the NIK’s activity.
The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) monitors compliance with the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) in Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway (the EEA EFTA States). ESA operates independently of the States and safeguards the rights of individuals and undertakings under the EEA Agreement, ensuring free movement, fair competition, and control of state aid.
International Standards on Auditing (ISA) are professional standards for the auditing of financial information. These standards are issued by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB). According to Olung M, ISA guides the auditor to add value to the assignment hence building confidence of investors.
Internal control, as defined by accounting and auditing, is a process for assuring of an organization's objectives in operational effectiveness and efficiency, reliable financial reporting, and compliance with laws, regulations and policies. A broad concept, internal control involves everything that controls risks to an organization.
An environmental audit is a type of evaluation intended to identify environmental compliance and management system implementation gaps, along with related corrective actions. In this way they perform an analogous (similar) function to financial audits. There are generally two different types of environmental audits: compliance audits and management systems audits. Compliance audits tend to be the primary type in the US or within US-based multinationals.
The Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), commonly referred to as the "Yellow Book", are produced in the United States by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) is an intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions. Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of INTOSAI. Depending on the type of system used in their home country, the members of INTOSAI may be variously titled the Chief Financial Controller, the Office of the Comptroller General, the Office of the Auditor General, the Court of Accounts, or the Board of Audit.
European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (EUROSAI) is a European intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions in their respective countries. It is one of the seven regional working groups of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI).
The International Journal of Government Auditing is published quarterly in Arabic, English, French, German and Spanish. As the official publication of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), the Journal supports cooperation, collaboration and knowledge sharing among Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) and the broader accountability community.
Security information and event management (SIEM) is a field within the field of computer security, where software products and services combine security information management (SIM) and security event management (SEM). SIEM is typically the core component of any security operations center (SOC), which is the centralized response team addressing security issues within an organization.
The Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh (CAG) is the supreme audit institution of the country. Like the SAIs in many other countries across the world, the institution is established by the Constitution of Bangladesh. This institute is responsible for maintaining accounts of the republic and auditing all receipts and expenditure of the Government of Bangladesh, including those of bodies and authorities substantially financed by the government. The reports of the CAG are discussed by the Public Accounts Committee, which is a standing committee in the Parliament of Bangladesh.
Vijayendra Nath Kaul was the tenth Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) from 2002 to 2008. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
The Organization of Latin American and Caribbean Supreme Audit Institutions (OLACEFS) is an international, autonomous, independent, apolitical and permanent organization. Its origins can be traced back to the First Congress of Latin American Supreme Audit Institutions - CLADEFS - held in 1963 in Caracas, Venezuela, in response to the need for a forum for exchanging ideas and experiences relating to government control, and for promoting cooperation and development between supreme audit institutions. At the Congress it was recommended that a Latin American Institute of Fiscal Control be created to carry out specialized research and serve as a center for information, education, coordination and mutual assistance between audit institutions.
The INTOSAI Development Initiative is a body of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) which supports capacity development of supreme audit institutions (SAIs) in developing countries. Founded in 1986, the organization was headquartered in Canada until 2001, when it moved to Norway. It is currently hosted by the Office of the Auditor General of Norway.
The Chamber of Accounts of the Republic of Azerbaijan is a supreme audit institution, the highest financial control authority of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The General Court of Audit (GCA) is the supreme audit institution of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is an independent body that reports directly to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.